


Waterfall

by bispeedsters



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Claurenz Week 2020, M/M, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-24
Updated: 2020-01-24
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:27:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22381825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bispeedsters/pseuds/bispeedsters
Summary: Claude makes Lorenz accompany him on a short day trip to a lagoon.Written for Claurenz Week 2020 Day 4: Mermaid
Relationships: Lorenz Hellman Gloucester/Claude von Riegan
Comments: 4
Kudos: 56
Collections: Claurenz Week: Winter 2020





	Waterfall

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Thank you so much for reading, I really wanted to contribute to this ship week and so I whipped this up! Hope you all enjoy!

“So, I found this waterfall…”

Lorenz looked down at the man casually swimming beside him, his gold and emerald tail glistening in the sunlight each time it came above the water. “Oh?” They’d been rowing (and swimming) around the island for about half an hour at this point, Claude hushing him everytime he asked where they were going, this was the first hint that Claude had a destination planned for them at all. 

“Mhm, it’s in this really pretty lagoon, I’d explain further but I don’t wanna spoil it.”

Lorenz smiled and rolled his eyes as he kept rowing “And how long until we get there?”

“Oh calm down mister impatient,” Claude said with a flick of his tail, splashing water right into Lorenz’s face. He laughed as Lorenz sputtered and wiped his face, “Maybe five minutes, at most” 

The rest of the short trip was spent in comfortable silence, both of them just enjoying the sound of the waves as Claude led them towards the lagoons opening. It took some fighting with the small row boat to maneuver it into the small lagoon but they were finally able to get it onto shore far enough where it wouldn’t get swept up in the tide.

Lorenz huffed when he was finally satisfied with the boat, using all his self restraint to pretend his didn’t hear Claude laughing at his exhaustion over a single boat. It wasn’t his fault he had people to do this kind of work for him growing up. Once he caught his breath he turned around to finally appreciate the lagoon that Claude had been so eager to show him. 

It was definitely worth the wait. Even if Claude had described the view to him it wouldn’t have given justice to the real deal. They were surrounded by jungle, the tree cover making it feel secluded despite it being so close to the ocean. The trees around were brilliant green and had flowers and vines growing on them in multiple colors. The water was a dark blue green that rippled gently against the shore, and to top it all off of course was the waterfall at the far end of it all. 

Lorenz slipped off his shoes before walking slowly towards the edge of the water where Claude was waiting close by, He was pleasantly surprised to find that was water was warmer than he expected for such a shaded area. “I suppose you were right, it is really pretty…” He said, still taking in all of the sights around him.

Claude grinned from his spot, his tail flipping in the air happily as he watched Lorenz look around in unguarded amazement, a look that wasn’t common on the others face. “Yeah, though not as pretty as you.” He said it quiet enough we thought he almost got away with Lorenz not hearing him but from the way the other instinctively rolled his eyes it was safe to assume he had been heard. 

“Anyways…” He said awkwardly, trying to brush off the comment Claude had made while hoping that his cheeks hadn’t flushed too much “Do you know how deep the water is? I’d hate to drown in such a beautiful place.” He asked as he tied his hair back into a low but tight ponytail. 

“You’re gonna swim?” Claude asked excitedly, it was rare for Lorenz to purposefully get into the water without being coerced.

“I figured I might as well, the water seems to be nice and I figure you’ll find a way to get me in there anyways. Might as well expedite the process.” He sounded fed up but the small smile playing on his lips got rid of any doubts that he didn’t enjoy this.

“Well, you don’t need to worry about drowning while im here, but to set your mind at ease it’s only a few feet deep,” He had checked when he first found the lagoon, while his impression of the place was that it was the perfect spot to bring Lorenz, he was also very conscious of the land dwellers safety so he had already checked to make sure that the possibility of the other drowning was slim to none. 

“If you say so…” He nervously replied getting deeper into the water, growing up landlocked up until a year ago had resulted in his swimming skills being less than ideal. Turns out Claude was telling the truth about the depth of the water, he had made it out to almost the middle before it came up to his shoulders with his feet still touching the ground. 

Claude swam around him a few times, pretending not to notice the water splashing up and hitting Lorenz in the face much to his annoyance. When he surfaced in front of Lorenz he didn’t look too happy, glaring at the merman with his arms crossed. It was probably supposed to be intimidating but Claude couldn’t help but laugh at his sour expression, “You’re so serious! I hate to tell you this but water has a habit of getting things wet” 

“I know that! I just don’t appreciate when you purposefully splash me.” He tried to sound indignant but both were aware how weak his argument sounded.

“Purposefully?” Claude gasped, raising a hand to his chest in feigned hurt, “Who do you take me for? Some kind of trickster who finds enjoyment in inconveniencing others?”

“Yes.”

He grinned, unable to keep up the offended facade, “Well then, you are an excellent judge of character.” 

That was what finally made Lorenz drop his annoyed look and actually laugh a bit, “You are ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous.” 

They delved into more lighthearted banter while Lorenz found his bearings in the water, Claude taking great amusement in watching the normally so composed man fail so miserably at graceful swimming. By the time Lorenz insisted he had to get out to eat the dinner he had packed his fingers were pruney and the sun was nearing the horizon. 

He dug the small basket out from the boat and brought it over to the shore where Claude was waiting, resting on his stomach and perched up on his elbows. "So what did you bring for me today?" He asked as Lorenz set the basket down far enough away that it didn't risk getting wet and started pulling out the covered plates.

"Well you insisted that I come with you so urgently that I didn't have much time to get anything prepared so today we just have assorted fruits and cheeses." He set the plates down in the sand so that Claude could pick off of them as he pleased. 

"Boring, you had that last week too." He pouted, popping a grape into his mouth. 

"Excuse me for not having exquisite human cuisine at my disposal at all hours of the day." 

Claude shrugged "You're excused," He laughed as Lorenz scoffed at his joke. When they had first met Claude assumed that Lorenz just couldn't take a joke, but now he saw past the indignant 'too good for jokes' attitude and knew that it was just a habit he developed to cover up actual laughter when growing up. 

The fruit and cheese was gone within minutes, swimming built up quite the appetite. By then the sun was just beginning to set, the sky turning to a soft orange. "Before we head back I wanted to show you one more thing" Claude said pushing himself back into the water. 

Lorenz raised an eyebrow but followed Claude into the water. He wasn't sure what the other could possibly have left to show him but he was sure that if he asked for any explanation he'd be met with silence or dodging of the question. He generally trusted Claude not to get him killed so he decided it was best to just go along with it. 

He only went down to his hip, deciding to just wade through the water next to Claude instead of making a fool of himself by trying to swim in any direction. Claude led him towards the waterfall, the sound of it growing from subtle background noise to a loud roar. 

"Alright, you're gonna hate this part but-" 

"A great start to any sentence." 

"Stick with me here. You're gonna hate this part, but it'll be worth it." 

Lorenz leveled Claude with an analytical look, and maybe for the first time ever, he saw no hint of mischief in the others face. So he took a deep breath to calm his nerves for whatever he was about to do. "Fine. What is it?" 

"You have to walk through the waterfall." 

He looked to the waterfall and then back at Claude. "You were right. I do hate this. 

"It'll be worth it! I swear!" Claude sent him his best puppy dog eyes and Lorenz knew he was screwed, he hated to sound cliche but he really was no match to those pleading eyes. 

"Fine. But you have to swim through first. I'm not letting you convince me to walk straight into a wall." 

Claude perked up, glad that Lorenz had agreed so quickly, "Great! See you on the other side!" 

And then Claude disappeared under the water and then swam through to the other side. Even with the waterfall obscuring the water, he could tell that the other didn't just swim a few feet and turn around, he definitely went past the waterfall. 

He then looked at the cascade of rushing water in front of him. He had agreed but now that his companion was gone it all felt so much bigger. The water seemed to fall faster, it sounded louder, and it just seemed overall more daunting. 

But Claude was waiting on him. 

Taking a deep breath and holding it he steeled his nerves before walking forward. He walked as quickly as he could with the water pushing down on him but just as quickly as he stepped into it, he stepped out on the other side. 

"Well, that seemed like it would be more dramatic." He commented, brushing loose wet hair out of his face. 

Claude fake gasped "What? You being over dramatic over something that ended up not being a huge deal? Color me shocked!" 

Lorenz glared at him "First of all, it's color me surprised. Second off, you aren't funny." 

"Oh I think I'm hilarious" 

He rolled his eyes and now took the time to look around the cave they've entered. "Wow…" Was all he could think to say. Hundreds if not thousands of tiny crystal shards littered the walls of the cave, the sunset shining through the water just perfectly to make the room twinkle and almost seem to glow. 

They stayed silent for a minute, taking in the true beauty of it all before Claude spoke again “You know it’s not as impressive at night, I imagine double so if you can’t see in the dark.”

Lorenz huffed out a small laugh “No, I don’t think it would be.”

A comfortable silence once again fell between them, the light in the cave grew dimmer as the sun set further. Claude looked up at Lorenz, his face serene in the calmness of the cave. “Hey...I have one more thing to show you but you have to be down here to see.” He hoped that he didn’t sound as nervous as he thought he did. No turning back now.

Lorenz raised an eyebrow at him, “What could you possibly have left to show me? Unless there’s another hidden cave under this hidden cave.” 

“Just get down here.”

Lorenz obliged, sinking down lower in the water so that he was the same height as Claude. He liked to think that he adjusted to many parts of his new friend being a mermaid but the height difference always threw him off. “Now what do you have left to show me?”

“Close your eyes,” Lorenz gave him a confused look “Trust me!”

“Fine.” He closed his eyes and waited for whatever Claude had planned.

And then he was being kissed.


End file.
